Billet



Jan. 16, 1962 BERTRAM ETAL BILLET Filed May 9, 1957 I, I J a 3Sheets-Sheet 1 L% ll 71!! jm/emors Jan. 16, 1962 Filed May 9, 1957 E.BERTRAM ETAL 3,017,042

BILLET 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Jan. 16, 1962 E. BERTRAM ETAL 3,017,042

BILLET Filed May 9, 1957 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 fm/emars nited States PatentOfifice 3,0l7,042 Patented Jan. 16, 1962 3,017,042 BILLET EduardBertram, Neclrarsulm, and Adolf Diez, Heilbronn (Neckar), Germany,assignors to Karl Schmidt G.m.b.H., Necirarsulm, Wurtternberg, GermanyFiled May 9, 1957, Ser. No. 658,159 Claims priority, application GermanyMay 30, 1956 4 Claims. (Cl. 214-105) This invention relates to billets,bars, or similarly cast shaped articles adapted to be stacked andconveyed by means of lifting and handling equipment, such as forklifttrucks. The invention is especially directed to billets which can bestacked without requiring special supports or hands in order to preventthe stack from collapsing while being moved.

In order to prevent billets from shifting relative to each other andbeing displaced after they have been stacked together, it is known togive the billets such shape that the stacked billets mutually engageeach other. In one form, the elongated side edges of the billets areprovided ,with projections which engage cooperating recesses in adjacentbillets.

It has also been known to provide grooves in the body of the billet withcooperating elevations or projections which are preferably located ontheir undersurfaces, whereas the grooves are on the top surface, so thatthe grooves and projections will engage as the billets are stacked.

Also, it is known to provide elongated billets having projections on theshortened edges, which edges have oblique surfaces by reason oftechniques required in the casting of the billets. It has been foundthat such billets with the oblique or beveled surfaces required forextracting the billets from the molds still have a certain amount ofrelative play between each other when arranged in the stack so that theindividual billets Within the stack can shift and make an unwieldystack, even though there is little danger of the stack collapsing.

The object of the instant invention is to produce a billet having a formsuch that the billets can be stacked with substantially no lateral playbetween the individual billets.

In general, the object is obtained by forming an elongated billet withdiscrete pyramidal elevations in the form of pointed teeth adjacent thenarrow ends of the billet. An even number of teeth is formed adjacentone narrow end, whereas an odd number of teeth is formed adjacent theopposite end during the casting of the billet. It is generallysufiicient to have one tooth 'at one end and two teeth at the other. Instacking the billets, they are placed one upon another in such a waythat the odd number of teeth engage the even number of teeth of anadjacent billet, with the billets in each course being alternatelyarranged with their teeth pointing upwards and downwards.

The bottom billet for the stack has the teeth as described above and, inaddition, has feet formed at the ends thereof in order to provideclearance above the floor, as required for the insertion of the fork ofa lift truck.

The means by which the object of the invention is ob tained aredescribed more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings, inwhich:

FIGURE 1 is a plan view of a billet according to the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a side elevational view of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is an end elevational view of FIGURES 1 and 2;

FIGURE 4 is a side elevational view of a bottom billet;

FIGURE 5 is a plan view of FIGURE 4;

FIGURE 6 is an end elevational view of FIGURE 4;

FIGURE 7 is an end elevational view of a plurality of stacked billets;and

FIGURE 8 is a side elevational view of FIGURE 7.

Each individual billet is composed of an elongated bar a having obliqueor beveled side edges. On the face of the billet toward which the sidesconverge are cast discrete pyramidal elevations in the form of pointedteeth. Adjacent one narrow end of the billet are an even number of teethb, as, for example, two teeth. On the opposite end of the billet are anodd number of teeth, as, for example, the single tooth b. The slope ofthe beveled end of the bar is continued at the same angle on the outerend portions of the billets b and b, and all the sides of the teeth havesimilar angles of slope.

The bottom billet or bar c, as shown in FIGURES 4 to 6, is of similarconstruction with the addition that it is provided at its ends with thefeet d.

The billets are stacked as shown in FIGURES 7 and 8. Two bottom billetsc are placed on the floor parallel to each other. The first course ofbars a is then laid on billets 0. Starting from the left-hand side ofFIGURE 7, it is shown that the lowest course of bars a is formed byfirst placing a bar a with its teeth pointing upwardly on the base bar0. Then a second bar a is placed along side of the first bar with itsteeth projecting downwardly. The oblique side edges of the bars are thusin flush contact with each other and the downwardly projecting teeth band b are flush with the beveled edges of the sides of the bottom billetc. Successive bars a are thus alternately arranged across the bottombar, it being noted that the extreme right bar can be dropped into placeand can be restrained by the end tooth on bottom bar c.

The next course is then laid at right angles to the first course, andwith the end teeth of the left-hand bar, note FIGURE 7, downwardlyprojecting and engaging the up wardly projecting tooth of bottom bar c.

The third course is then laid in the same direction of the first course,and the alternate bars a have their downwardly projecting teeth engagingthe upwardly projecting teeth of the bars of the first course. The barsso arranged are prevented from shifting in one direction by means of theteeth engaging the beveled side edges of the bars in adjacent courses,and from shifting in another direction by the inter-engagement of teethwith those of the third or superimposed bars. In this nanner,substantially all of the lateral play between the individual bars isprevented, and a stable stack is obtained.

The bars can be stacked in courses until a desired height is reached. Asindicated in the upper left-hand corner of FIGURE 8, the top-most coursecan contain one additional bar which can be easily dropped into place.In practice, it has been found preferable to place an even number ofbars a across the bottom billets c, and then to form additional coursesby means of crosswise laid courses of an even number of bars a until thestack is complete.

Having now described the means by which the object of the invention isobtained, we claim:

1. A solid stack of billets, each billet being composed of an elongatedbar having opposite fiat substantially rectangular surfaces extendinglongitudinally of said bar, a single tooth mounted perpendicular to onerectangular surface adjacent one end of said bar, a pair of teethmounted perpendicular to said one surface adjacent the other end of saidbar with the space between the pair of teeth having a shapecomplementary to said single tooth, and each billet having alongitudinal length between each tooth and the pair of teeth equal to awhole multiple of the width of the billet; a lowest row of billets laidin side by side contact parallel to each other with the teeth ofalternate billets projecting up and down, respectively, a

second similar row of billets laid upon said lowest row at right anglesthereto, a third similar row of billets laid upon said second row andparallel to and in vertical alignment with the billets of said lowestrow, and with the downwardly turned teeth of the third row interengagingwith the upwardly projecting teeth of said lowest row.

2. A stack of billets as in claim 1, each billet and teeth having sidesbeveled at the same angle.

3. A cast billet adapted to be stacked in courses of crossed rows withsimilar shaped billets comprising an elongated bar, an even number ofpyramidal pointed toothlike projections extending transversely of saidbar adjacent one end thereof, at least one of an odd number ofprojections adjacent the other end and on the same side of said bar andaligned intermediately of said even number projections, each projectionhaving a height substantially equal to but not greater than thethickness of 4 the billet, and said odd number projections each having ashape complementary to the space between adjacent even numberedprojections so as to fit into such space in a superimposed billet.

4. A billet as in claim 3, said-even number projections being two innumber.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 102,090,090 Yates Aug. 17, 1937 2,119,112 Mitchell May 31, 1938 2,146,678Jung Feb. 7, 1939 2,252,808 Jung Aug. 19, 1941 15 2,420,625 StalnakerMay 13, 1947 FOREIGN PATENTS 959,316 Germany Mar. 7, 1957

